Sandra Masin's Blog

There is so much that has happened since Election Day.   The fact that we now have a legislature that will concentrate on fiscal stability, on education, and on protecting the working-class still casts a glow of excitement on conversations.  I am so proud of Minnesotans for opposing the two constitutional amendments that were meant to divide and demean.   They certainly did nothing to help the budget crisis or improve the job situation.

 The DFL House Caucus met to elect its leaders for the upcoming session.  We were privileged to have Governor Dayton come in at the beginning and address us.   The result of the elections was that Representative Paul Thissen emerged as the new Speaker and Representative Erin Murphy as the Majority Leader, they have experience taking on tough issues in the legislature and their incredible effort to help DFL candidates’ campaign illustrates their ability to work with a host of diverse organizations.     

The newly-elected House candidates met on Friday of that same week for orientation.  It looks like a good group that is excited about the prospects before them.  

There have been several appreciation and celebration events.   The number of volunteers and the extent of their involvement was overwhelming.  It was their hard work that made the success on Election Day possible.

Last, a friend and I finally got around to celebrating our birthdays.   Instead of our annual dinner out, we decided to see Bruce Springsteen and the E-Street Band at the X-Cel.  It was a marvelous evening; I can see why he is so popular.  He came out and the energy level in the building immediately went way up and it never really went down.  An extremely talented group of people kept the audience totally engaged all evening.

A day set aside to honor all those who work and toil to earn a living. 

I find it incredible that some public officials and candidates demean many of the workers in our community.   I see so many struggling to make ends meet and yet there are those who begrudge decent salaries for the average workers and say nothing about the outrageous or obscene compensation going to top-level corporate officials.   Why is it that the people who educate our children are used as a target? Why is it that people who work in the public sector are criticized and yet we expect them to always be there when we need them?   How many miners have to die before safety concerns are addressed?  The list goes on and on.  Why would anyone vote for a candidate that is critical of the people that they are supposed to oversee or represent?  The lack of respect is a dominate theme this summer.   It seems to me if we want to encourage respect, responsibility and loyalty, then we need to ensure that our leaders are respectful of others and that we are respectful in our dealings with others.

We each have a role to fill and we should feel good about our accomplishments.  A person who works hard and does her/his best deserves our appreciation and respect!

Had a great time attending the neighborhood events!  Highlights included a dunk tank at Rasmussen College, one of the largest potted tomato plants I have ever seen at Boulder Court Apartments, the Mobile Pantry at the Eagan Resource Center, and a live band at the Timber Wolf neighborhood celebration.  Good food, conversation, and fun everywhere. 

A manager of an apartment complex explained how important this event was for residents to get to know one another and said they always budget in advance for it.  In addition to having a good time, the hope is that the interaction will cause residents to look out for one another.   An excellent explanation of what this evening is all about.  It is about being part of a community!

Excerpts from FATHERS ARE WONDERFUL PEOPLE by Helen Steiner Rice:

“Fathers are wonderful people too little understood,

And we do not sing their praises as often as we should…”

“But Fathers are just WONDERFUL in a million different ways,

And they merit loving compliments and accolades of praise”

Today is a special time to honor those special men in our lives.

I was very fortunate to have had a very loving and supportive father. There was never any question that his family always came first.

I attended the ecumenical Stand for Justice event on Sunday afternoon in Mendota Heights. Everyone I talked with was impressed with the presentations and was energized to work more aggressively to improve our communities.

Jewish Community Action has documented eight beliefs which would work well for all of us. Examples: #1- It is our inheritance and our fundamental responsibility to repair the  broken world. #3-Our destiny is bound together with all people. We must act in the interest of our shared faith. #5- We must work collectively. The reading of the statements was followed by a lecture on Rabbinic Teachings.

There was a moving testimony by a woman from Minneapolis who had been through a series of major misfortunes and was finally given help in saving her home from foreclosure. Another speaker explained MAZON, an organized agenda to help stamp out hunger. A speaker in opposition to the Voter Suppression Amendment said she had fought for freedom to vote sixty years ago and shouldn’t have to fight for it again. A college student stepped forward to say how the Voter Suppression Amendment would work against her and other students.

An interesting discussion by four members of the clergy provided insight on their stances to oppose the two Constitutional Amendments. The Rabbi said she is standing up for what her congregation believes. The Minister used the quote “Nobody is free until everybody is free.” The Priest doesn’t believe the church should be supporting the amendments. The Imam said some things should not be legislated. A minister representing ISAIAH  referred to the necessity to repeat the fight for racial and economic justice. He used the saying “We must not rest until freedom comes.”

The underlying theme was when we work together, we provide hope. The time for action is now! It was an afternoon of hope and inspiration.

Memorial Day is a day set aside to reflect on those who made sacrifices to preserve our country and  the freedoms we enjoy.  This Memorial Day has even more impact because of a friend who died last month.  Knowing Bruce served in the U.S. Navy, it seems like the ideal time to think about Bruce and the way he helped make lives better and our paths easier.   

Bruce Brekke lived in Eagan for quite a while and interacted with a variety of  groups within our community.  He met on a regular basis with a group for coffee, his neighbors knew him as the fix-it guy, and many of us knew him because of his firm belief in a government that should help its citizens.  Bruce was an avid reader, so discussions with him were always interesting.  I knew him best as someone who supported government that works for all.  He had strong convictions, which he backed up with facts and action.  Bruce was always willing to help.  One of my last memories of Bruce was at the DFL Endorsing Convention on March 24.  It was late afternoon  and the convention had yet to endorse a candidate for the senate.  Bruce had been having trouble with coughing, so he and his wife, Marcia, were planning to leave.  Needless to say, they were encouraged to stay a while longer, and they did.  A few days later, Bruce received the news that he had lung cancer.  He died on April 10th.

One unique part of the Celebration of the Life of Bruce Higham Brekke was the distribution of  Bruce’s tee shirts.  He had a large collection of shirts, many from his travels, but even more with puns and quotes.  This gave everyone the opportunity to have a visual  souvenir of this very special man.

We were so fortunate to have known Bruce and to have him as part of our lives.  We lost a good friend, a good neighbor, a champion for progressive values.

The presentations at the education forum this morning highlighted some of the problems our schools are facing. The state owes schools approximately 2.4 billion dollars and there is no plan as to when the debt will be paid back. In the meantime, some school districts are borrowing money to keep the districts in operation. Why would legislators deliberately place our kids’ education and our schools in jeopardy? This goes back to the irresponsible budget settlement last year and other similar acts. Class sizes in Minnesota are now some of the largest in the country. How does that help our children or economic recovery in Minnesota?

School District #191, Burnsville-Eagan-Savage, is looking to make five million dollars in cuts. One parent said he has already open-enrolled his children in another district because of the cuts. Someone who attended one of #191’s budget meetings said that other parents threatened to do the same thing if cuts continue. This problem is facing districts throughout the state.

Minnesota needs to find a stable funding source for our schools! That is essential to providing bright futures for our children and bringing good jobs to Minnesota. The caliber of Minnesota’s work force was instrumental in the economic success of past years and is essential as we go forward.

We need legislators who understand the importance of keeping our public schools competitive nationally and globally.

The consensus was that we all need to take action to contact our legislators and tell them we expect them to fund education appropriately.

Thanks to the folks at Our Future MN for putting this event together.

The Uptake taped the event in Eagan today,
http://www.theuptake.org/2012/05/12/burnsville-mn-residents-oppose-education-cuts-four-day-week .

Just a reminder about the meeting Saturday morning on education funding.

This is a collaborative effort to give people in our community the opportunity to discuss the economic challenges facing our schools, a time to ask questions and talk about priorities. The forum is Saturday, May 12 from 9 a.m. to 10:30 at Rasmussen College in Eagan.

The new Senate District 51  held its Endorsing Convention on March 24th at the Dakota Hills Middle School in Eagan.   It was a long and lively event.   The race for the Senate District 51 position between former State Senator Jim Carlson and Eagan Mayor Mike Maguire went to four  ballots  before arriving at an endorsement. Carlson won on the last vote. 

I was extremely pleased and privileged to win the endorsement for 51A  on the first ballot.  I want to extend my gratitude  to everyone who helped make that decision possible.  Gary Meyer was also  seeking the  51A House position. 

Laurie Halversen received the endorsement from the 51B delegation. 

My thanks to all who attended and participated in this event.   It took a lot of planning, preparation, and patience.   This is truly  democracy at the grassroots level.